The Museum
by reniRCx
Summary: Just a bit of Ten/Rose fluff and some imaginative history of the future.


A/N: Read it. Don't own.

The TARDIS eventually stopped jerking about as it did, and Rose gave herself a mental once-over. "So where are we now?" she asked excitedly.

The Doctor looked up from the computer screen he had been mumbling at and said "Twenty-fourth century Earth. Not much going on in the world around this time, but I thought you might enjoy a glimpse of your past and future."

Rose had no idea what this meant, but didn't say anything, knowing that it would make sense after awhile.

"You should probably change," the Doctor said, eyeing Rose's simple jeans and t-shirt outfit. "Late 22nd century fashion is in vogue right now."

Rose was surprised the Doctor even knew what fashion was. "What's late 22nd century fashion like?" she asked.

"Oh, it's a hell of a lot better than early twenty-first," he said. Apparently forgetting that he had instructed Rose to change her clothes, he stepped toward the door of the TARDIS. "Well, come on, then!"

"But you said…" Rose trailed off as he opened the door. _I suppose I'll just look vintage,_ she thought ironically. _As if he even knows anything about fashion. _

When Rose stepped outside, her immediate thought was that she was underdressed. _So _this _is late twenty-second century fashion, _she thought. At first, the clothing reminded her of bands from the '70s, but on a closer look, it was very different. The designs were _moving. _One woman was sporting a purple shirt with a brighter purple flower flashing in and out of existence. A man (in modern times, she would have suspected him to be gay) wore tight pants with pink and pinker stripes swirling down it like a candy cane being turned. There were animations and moving words on almost everyone's pants, shirts, and even hats.

The room was crowded with people milling about among stacks of objects. Nobody seemed to give the TARDIS a second glance. It occurred to her that the people in this room _must _have heard the engines as it materialized, but she wisely decided not to go to the Doctor for an explanation as it would just leave her dizzy.

"It's the year 2347, and this is the fashion of the past," the Doctor said, coming up behind her already talking. _Speak of the devil… _"So, how do you like it?"

"It's…different," Rose said weakly. Forcing herself to look past the outrageous clothing, she noticed that they were in a large white and silver room with skylights. Throngs of people moved among various objects encased in glass. "Are we in a museum?"

"We most certainly are. You, Rose Tyler, are standing in the largest Earth history museum to be created ever."

"Wow." Rose had never been much of a fan of museums, but that was an impressive title.

"In about seventeen years, all of this will be gone. Burnt down by the third anti-human brotherhood of-"

Rose didn't even let him finish. "Anti-human? Is that the racism of the future, then, species-ism?"

"At this point in time, yes. But that all comes to a screeching halt in the year 2677, when…"

Rose tuned him out and went to explore the room. Most of the objects were unfamiliar, but one small case caught her eye. "Is that what I think it is?"

The Doctor followed her to the case. "That's an American football helmet."

"Why is it in here? Don't they have sport in the twenty-fourth century?"

"Competitive sports among humans fell out of style in the late 21st century," the he informed her. "Actually, American football was one of the longest to stick around. Oh, look here." The Doctor pointed at an electronic plaque that accompanied the item.

"As inferred by historians, these helmets were likely worn by warriors in the political battles of the 21st century."

"Warriors?" Rose asked. "Isn't that term a little before my time?"

"I suppose. They got one thing right at least; the political battles were American. Long story short, both their major political parties formed their own army, presidencies turned into dictatorships…it was on the verge of civil war when the One World Government was proposed in 2078. That was also around the time aliens started becoming more familiar on Earth. The twenty-first century is when everything changes."

"I'll be looking forward to it," Rose said.

"Of course, the tumult in America around that time is why so many of the people you meet in your future sound English," he added.

Rose hadn't really noticed this. "Right."

"I _hate _archeologists," the Doctor muttered, rereading the laughably incorrect plaque. "All archeologists, always. But none more than 24th century archeologists."

"Why's that?" Rose asked, realizing too late that she had just brought on one of the Doctor's longer rants.

"You people in the 24th century- it's all about cutting edge, so much that you forget the past. You learned about ancient Rome in school, right? Excellent civilization, for its time. Much of what you learned is probably incorrect, mind you, but at least they tried to find out about it. This century? They don't go into any kind of detail about what happened three hundred years ago! It's all about bloody alien technology. The wheel was one of your most ancient inventions, and you used it for millennia. Now, they can't even remember what American football is like. All they would have to do is pick up a DVD player, if there are even any of those left."

"Let's go see if there is one," Rose said. "And see what _they _think it is."

The Doctor was not in a good mood when the pair returned to the TARDIS hours later. Being a historian wasn't even his _job, _and he could do it better than any of the idiots who'd catalogued this great museum. Even Rose had noticed some of the more obvious inaccuracies.

He had unlocked the TARDIS and had the door halfway open when Rose said, "Oy, look over here."

The Doctor grimaced when he saw it. A plaque. Somehow, they had catalogued the TARDIS like one of their possessions.

_Based on the size and shape of this box, it was most likely used in the twentieth and twenty-first century as a public bathroom facility. _

Rose read the Doctor's expression. If there was one thing she knew he hated, it was people insulting his TARDIS.

"It _says _police box, the idiots," the Doctor muttered. Giggling, Rose stepped inside. "_Bloody _archeologists."

A/N: It's definitely not my best work, just something I've had in my head for awhile. (Actually, I had it in my head for awhile, wrote it down last year, then had it in my desk for an even longer while). Please comment, it would mean the world to me!


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